1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-forming apparatus (image-processing apparatus) configured to control copy operations based on information about copy (reproduction) protection, where the information is included in image data, a method of controlling the image-forming apparatus, a program, and a storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
There has been a technology achieved to restrict copying by embedding information indicating that copying is allowed under a predetermined condition and/or information indicating that protection is provided against copying in a printed matter, as dot patterns and/or barcodes, so that security against the printed matter is ensured. However, there has been the demand for restricting copying for an ordinary user while allowing a specific user to perform copying. An image-forming apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-228897 determines whether copying should be prohibited or allowed by making a user input a password when the copying is restricted.
Even though there has been a demand for restricting copying for the ordinary user while allowing the specific user to perform copying, another demand has arisen to allow a specific user to perform copying without manually inputting password data embedded in a document protected from copying.